Dollar General (DG) marked its 27th consecutive year of same-store sales growth in fiscal 2016. It followed this milestone up with a beat on both the top and bottom lines during its first quarter of 2017, with comps once again growing – but by only about 0.7%. As I was sifting through the retail carnage, Dollar General was one of the companies that stood out as above average, so I decided to take a closer look with this article.
The business
The company’s primary niche seems to come from its low cost operating structure. The majority of its stores are rural, with roughly 70% of them located in towns of 20,000 people or less. It constantly seeks ways to reduce (or at least control) costs that won’t affect the shopping experience for its customers, many of whom are primarily in a lower income bracket. This is exhibited by its low prices, where 80% of its stock-keeping units are set at $5 or less.
Source: 2016 10-K
Top Low Price Stocks To Buy For 2018: Diana Containerships Inc.(DCIX)
Advisors’ Opinion:
- [By Lisa Levin] Related CRMD Mid-Day Market Update: U.S. Stocks Turn Negative; AveXis Shares Spike Higher 12 Biggest Mid-Day Gainers For Tuesday CorMedix's (CRMD) CEO Khoso Baluch on Q4 2016 Results – Earnings Call Transcript (Seeking Alpha)
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CorMedix Inc. (NYSE: CRMD) shares fell 27.5 percent to $1.50 after the company reported Q4 results and issued a business update.
Bioamber Inc (NYSE: BIOA) shares tumbled 23.6 percent to $2.40. BioAmber reported FY16 adjusted loss of $1.07 per share on revenue of $8.3 million.
The Medicines Company (NASDAQ: MDCO) shares dipped 20.9 percent to $41.62.
Innocoll Holdings PLC (NASDAQ: INNL) shares fell 20.3 percent to $1.49. Innocoll posted a narrower-than-expected quarter loss, but revenue missed estimates. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Innocoll from Buy to Hold.
Rosetta Genomics Ltd. (USA) (NASDAQ: ROSG) shares declined 20.3 percent to $3.83. On Thursday, Rosetta Genomics disclosed a 1-for-12 reverse stock split.
Esperion Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: ESPR) shares dropped 19.9 percent to $23.76. Esperion Therapeutics shares have jumped 106.19 percent over the past 52 weeks, while the S&P 500 index has gained 16.70 percent in the same period.
AmTrust Financial Services Inc (NASDAQ: AFSI) tumbled 18.3 percent to $17.65. AmTrust Financial disclosed that it will delay its annual report filing for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016.
Qualstar Corporation (NASDAQ: QBAK) slipped 17.7 percent to $6.85. Qualstar reported a Q4 loss of $0.20 per share on revenue of $2.2 milli - [By Lisa Levin]
Shares of Diana Containerships Inc (NASDAQ: DCIX) got a boost, shooting up 169 percent to $16.49. Diana Containerships shares climbed 276 percent, since the election.
- [By Lisa Levin]
Shares of Diana Containerships Inc (NASDAQ: DCIX) were down 8 percent to $0.433. Diana Containerships reported a Q1 loss of $0.80 per share on sales of $3.77 million.
- [By Wayne Duggan]
DryShips isn’t the only shipping stock that has skyrocketed this month; the following stocks’ shares are all up between 320 and 720 percent since November 2:
Diana Containerships Inc (NASDAQ: DCIX). Euroseas Ltd. (NASDAQ: ESEA). Globus Maritime Ltd (NASDAQ: GLBS). Sino-Global Shipping America, Ltd. (NASDAQ: SINO).
One of the primary reasons for the extreme moves in DryShips and other shipping stocks is a combination of large short positions in the stocks and extremely low share counts. DryShips in particular lowered its share count from around 672 million to only around 1 million via a series of reverse stock-splits throughout the year. The splits were intended to allow the stock to maintain its Nasdaq listing after it had lost more than 98 percent of its value in the first 10 months of 2016.
- [By Lisa Levin]
Diana Containerships Inc (NASDAQ: DCIX) was down, falling around 26 percent to $0.276. Diana Containerships disclosed a 1-for-7 reverse stock split.
- [By Lisa Levin]
Diana Containerships Inc (NASDAQ: DCIX) shares shot up 45 percent to $9.60. Diana Containerships reported a Q3 loss of $128.67 per share on sales of $6.73 million.
Top Low Price Stocks To Buy For 2018: Greenhill & Co., Inc.(GHL)
Advisors’ Opinion:
- [By Jim Robertson]
For investors with a long memory, the Iridium communications service was launched on November 1, 1998 only for the founding company to go into Chapter 11 bankruptcy nine months later as the cost of service was prohibitive for many users. Iridium Satellite LLC was eventually merged with a special purpose acquisition company (GHQ) created by the investment bank Greenhill & Co. (NYSE: GHL) in September 2009 to form Iridium Communications.
- [By Lisa Levin]
In trading on Friday, financial shares slipped by 0.55 percent. Meanwhile, top losers in the sector included Greenhill & Co., Inc. (NYSE: GHL), down 11 percent, and SVB Financial Group (NASDAQ: SIVB), down 8 percent.
Top Low Price Stocks To Buy For 2018: WGL Holdings Inc(WGL)
Advisors’ Opinion:
- [By Shauna O’Brien]
Brean Capital reported on Friday that it has upgraded natural gas utility company WGL Holdings Inc (WGL).
The firm has raised its rating on WGL from “Hold” to “Buy,” and has given the company a $46 price target. This price target suggests a 12% increase from the stock’s current price of $40.62. The upgrade was primarily based on valuation and future investment opportunities.
“Like many utilities in the gas LDC space, the shares of WGL Holdings have come off recent highs and are now trading at a level we consider attractive,” analyst Michael Gaugler comments. “Beyond valuation, we consider the recent announcement of conditional approval of Dominion’s Cove Point facility for LNG export as a positive development in terms of future investment opportunities, given the company’s one-third interest in the Commonwealth Pipeline project, which we believe will be revisited due to future increased demand.”
WGL Holdings shares were mostly flat during pre-market trading Friday. The stock has been mostly flat YTD.
